Perception

I am contemplating what our own senses tell us compared to what others’ senses tell them. Do you really see what I see? Do I hear what you hear? And what about taste and smell?

It was Sue who got me started on this track.

If we are outdoors you will only very infrequently see a picture of Sue sans sunglasses, except perhaps if we’re doing coffee in the car on an overcast day. Or maybe even outside in winter under a very cloudy sky.  I swear that she considers donning them during a full moon at midnight.

But I didn’t know until just yesterday that even as a child she had to sit facing away from the window at dinner hour. And they didn’t have a big window either. I do wonder what it would be like to see as she does, but other than having an inkling, I will never know for sure.

Add it to the growing list of things I don't know, not really about Sue, but I am referring to my lack of knowledge in general.

Is my azure blue sky the same colour as yours? We assume so, but we don’t know. Surely, an artistic person sees differently than the rest of us. We know about colour-blind people, but I expect there are all sort of gradations of colour perception.

Just as surely, a musician must hear differently than I do, especially those gifted (or cursed?) with perfect pitch. Also consider how we hear at different volume levels. In my case, my hearing loss frightens me when my hearing aids are out. And sometimes when they're in too.

Taste is so obvious, isn’t it? While broccoli is anathema to me, Frumpy Prof  Pipe loves it. Jonathan will only eat raw carrots, but I need them so highly roasted that the carroty taste is obliterated. Even then, gravy helps. Sue loves to put cauliflower in a salad; I can only handle it well cooked and smothered in cheese. These are not things that we choose but the way that we are.

Clearly our brains all work differently too, other than just what our senses perceive. My introverted brain, doubtless, perceives and processes differently that your more extroverted brain. While you may be stimulated by social situations, they likely tire me. I can handle them well in moderation, but then I will be happy to withdraw and recharge.

I don’t have any great insight or conclusion to draw from these ruminations (which spellcheck tells me I can’t pluralize) because I am just an old guy sitting in his easy chair, with vague notions fleetingly passing through his wee brain.